Colour a map of countries
Tap countries to colour them, build a legend with names and patterns, and switch between the world, a continent or a country by its states.
- Free
- No account
- Countries, states, empires
- Legend with patterns
Layers
Eraser
What it does
Erase from
Start with…
Tap countries to colour them, build a legend with names and patterns, and switch between the world, a continent or a country by its states.
What you can make
The euro area in 2026Countries coloured in with two legend colours: 21 use the euro, 6 EU members keep their own currency.
Europe in 1914The borders of 1914, with the first moves of the First World War drawn over them.
A rail trip across EuropeEight cities by train, with numbered markers and a dashed route.
How far from Delhi?Circles of 250, 500 and 1,000 km measured on the globe, with the cities inside them.
What you can do
Every drawing tool
Markers, text, lines, arrows, curved arrows, areas, boxes, circles, a freehand pen and a measuring tool.
Any year, 3000 BC to today
Move the timeline and the borders change with it. Give a drawing a start and end year and it appears only then.
Colour in countries
Tap countries, states, provinces or empires to colour them, with a legend of colours and patterns you can rename.
Real data underneath
Cities, rivers, voyages, World Heritage Sites, tectonic plates and more, ready to copy into your drawing.
True distances and areas
Circles of an exact radius, distances and areas, measured along the curve of the Earth.
Share and export
A link to share, PNG for slides, PDF for print, and GeoJSON, KML or GPX for other mapping tools.
How it works
Tap to colour
The world map is open with the Fill tool ready: tap a country to colour it, tap again to clear it.
Build the legend
Add colours in the Regions tab, give each a name and a pattern (stripes, dots, grid), and the legend draws itself.
Colour many at once
Fill whole continents, regions of the world or groups such as the EU, NATO, the G20 or OPEC in one tap.
Export the map
The legend, title and data credits print on the PNG and PDF. Share a link to let others edit a copy.
Data you can cite
- Natural EarthPublic domainCountries, coastlines and the simple base map
- Cliopatria (Seshat)CC BY 4.0Borders of 1,600+ states and empires, 3000 BC to today
- OpenStreetMapODbLStreets and places on the detailed base maps
- geoBoundariesOpen licences, per countryDistrict lines inside countries
Every exported picture prints the credits of the data on it. All sources: data sources.
Your maps stay yours
- Your map is saved in this browser as you draw. No account, no sign-in.
- Files you open (GeoJSON, KML, GPX, CSV) are read in your browser and never uploaded.
- A short link stores a copy of the map only when you make one, so the link works for anyone you send it to.
- What you draw is yours to use in lessons, articles, books and slides; keep the data credits on it.
Visit statistics and cookies are explained on the privacy page.
Questions
Can I colour states instead of countries?
Yes. Templates open 30+ countries by their states or provinces, the US by its 3,000+ counties, and whole continents by state. Tap a region to colour it.
Can I colour empires of the past?
Yes. Choose "Empires" under What a tap colours, pick a year, and tap an empire; it keeps its colour in every year it exists.
Is YearMaps Draw free?
Yes. Drawing, sharing links and exporting PNG, PDF, GeoJSON, KML and GPX files are all free, with no account. Exported pictures carry a small @yearmaps.com mark and the credits of the data on the map.
Do I need an account to save my map?
No. Your map is saved in your browser as you draw. To keep it elsewhere, share its link, or save a YearMaps file and open it again later from the File menu.
Can I use the maps I make?
Yes. The map belongs to you, in school work, articles, presentations and books. Keep the data credits printed on the picture: the borders come from Cliopatria (CC BY 4.0) and the base map from Natural Earth (public domain).
Can I import my own data?
Yes. Open or drop GeoJSON, KML, KMZ (Google Earth) and GPX (GPS) files onto the map. They are read in your browser and never uploaded.
More ways to use it
Blank world mapEvery country of the world, outlined and ready: print it blank for a quiz, or colour and label it online first.
Blank map of the United StatesAll 50 states and the District of Columbia, outlined and ready to colour for an election map, a quiz or a road trip.
Blank map of EuropeThe 50 countries of Europe, from Iceland to Russia, outlined and ready to print blank or to colour and label online.- Make a map of where you have beenColour the countries you have visited, pin the cities you loved, draw the routes between them, and keep or share the map as a picture.
- Make your own mapA free map maker in the browser.
- Make a historical mapChoose a year, see the empires and states of that moment, and draw your own history over them: campaigns, trade routes, battles, borders and notes.
Every map page on YearMaps has a Draw on this map button in its Share panel, which opens the same view here. See what's new in YearMaps Draw.